Priest was an advocate for East Austin residents

Ex-pastor at Our Lady of Guadalupe fought tide of gentrification.

The Rev. William “Bill” Elliott , who presided over Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church for 10 years and became an outspoken voice for the East Austin community, died Wednesday at the age of 81 in Canada.

Elliott was born Nov. 11, 1934, in Saint John, New Brunswick, where his father had a butcher shop. He was ordained a priest in 1961 as a member of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, according to his obituary.

Before coming to Austin in 1991 and presiding as pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Elliott served in such varied places as Vancouver Island, the jungles of Peru and in San Antonio. In Corpus Christi, he expanded the parish and fostered family-based religious education.

“He was one of the most passionate (people) for the poor and the vulnerable,” said Barbara Budde, former director of social ministries at the Diocese of Austin.

Elliott, who had witnessed how the residents of his hometown of Saint John became displaced in the 1950s when houses were leveled to give way to new developments, became very involved in community affairs as his East Austin neighborhood began to face gentrification.

“He fought hard for the East

End Austin neighborhood to keep it affordable and well-served by the city,” his obituary says. “He never forgot the dismantling of the East End of Saint John and did not want to see that happen to the East End of Austin.”

Elliott believed that the departure of old-time residents would destroy the character of the neighborhood, and he helped build affordable homes for low-income residents to keep people in the area.

Close to the end of his service in Austin, he tried to fifight developers seeking city approval to build a hotel, office towers and apartments near Interstate 35 and East 11th Street, where the Robertson Hill Apartments are now located.

After 10 years in Austin, Elliott returned to Saint John in 2002.

He was the appointed administrator of St. Joseph’s Parish until he retired in August for health reasons.

He is survived by his brother, sister-in- law, sev-

eral nieces and nephews.

AMERICAN-STATESMAN 2001 During his time at Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Rev. Bill Elliott regularly hugged his parishioners during his greetings, as he did here in May 2001. Elliott returned to his native Canada the next year, and died there Wednesday.